Unit air conditioner



May 24, 1938. APGUDMUNDSEN UNIT AIR CQNDITIONER Filed July 27, 1953 5Sheets-Sheet l R O T N E V m V ATTO RN EYS y 1938. A. GUDMUNDSEN2,118,044

UNIT AIR CONDITIONER Filed July 27, 1955 s Sheets-Sheet 1 *"flggL...

a I f g r W w w Q ea ATTORNEYS May 24; 1938. A. GUDMUNDSENY UNIT AIRCONDITIONER Filed July 27, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet I5 lNVEN-TO R Hus/m fitlfliflltilddtll ATTORNE Patented May 24, 1938 Claims.

This invention relates to air conditioners and more particularly to aportable type for yearround use.

According to one form which the invention may assume, the airconditioner is contained in a portable cabinet in which is constructed arefrigerant chamber adapted to use solid carbon dioxide as arefrigerant. Adjacent the refrigerant chamber is an air-cooling conduitwhich may be used when it is desired to cool and dehumidify air. Anotherconduit is constructed in the cabinet in which water may be maintained.This may be used when it is desired to humidify air.

The bottom wall of the refrigerant chamber is constructed of a goodheat-conducting material such as metal, and has dependent therefrom finsextending into the cooling conduit for more efiicient transfer of heat.

A special fin cover or hood is provided which may serve to close thecooling conduit and to insulate the heat-transfer fins, and, inaddition, may form a partition between the humidifying conduit and thecooling conduit. Suitable means are provided for draining such moistureas may be precipitated from the cooled air.

Frame elements carrying a suitable wicking are provided for insertion inthe water chamber in the humidifying conduit for increasing theeffective wetted surface exposed to the air passing through thehumidifying conduit.

An economizer coil is connected to the refrigerant chamber through whichmay pass cold gaseous carbon dioxide obtained from the subliming ofcarbon dioxide.

A filter is provided for cleaning the air and a fan or blower, forcirculating air through the conditioner and discharging it therefrom.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic. ofthis invention will be particularly pointed out inthe claims appendedhereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, and themanner in which it may be carried out, may be better understood byreferring to the following description taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings forming a part thereof, in which- Figure 1 is aview in perspective of the air conditioner;

Figure 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure"! is a view of the air conditioner looking down with the topremoved; t

Figure 5 is a section on line 55 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary perspective of the fin cover;

Figure '7 is a perspective of a wick-frame element with the wickpartially cut away; and

Figure 8 is a view on line B8 of Figure 2.

L ke reference characters denote like parts in the several figures ofthe drawings. 5 In the following description and in the claims, variousdetails will be identified by specific names for convenience but theyare intended to be as generic in their application as the art Willpermit.

Referring now to the drawings, the conditioner 10 comprises a metalcasing made up of side walls l0, bottom H, front I2, back 83 and hingedtop it; mounted on casters IS.

A refrigerant chamber I6 is constructed in the casing and comprises sidewalls Ill. The side 15 walls ii of the refrigerant chamber areinsulated. A refrigerant chamber cover it is provided, which comprisesan insulated metal casing shaped to fit into the refrigerant chamber.Shoulder projections IS on the top of the cover 20 rest upon shoulders20 formed by the upper inside edge of the refrigerant chamber sidewalls. Mounted on the top of the refrigerant chamber cover are aplurality of pivoted cam lever hasps 2i adapted to register with catches22 attached 25 to the upper edge of the refrigerant chamber side walls.Between shoulders l9 and 20 is mounted a soft rubber gasket to form atight fit between the cover and chamber when the hasps are in lockedposition. Ordinary window sash fasteners 30 may be used for thispurpose. A handle 24 is mounted on the top of the refrigerant chambercover to facilitate lifting when it is desired to remove the cover.

The bottom plate 25 of the refrigerant chamber 35 is constructed of agood heat-transferring material, such as metal, and has dependenttherefrom fins 26 to be described more in detail hereinafter.

A baflie plate 21 extending the full width of the casing is mountedbetween the bottom of the 40 refrigerant chamber and the bottom of theeasing to form cooling conduit 28 and humidifying conduit 29.

A fin cover or hood 30 which comprises an insulated metal box withbottom 32 and side walls 5 33, is mounted between baffle 21 andrefrigerant chamber bottom 25. This fin hood is vertically adjustableand is adapted to enclose and insulate the heat-transferring fins whenit is in its uppermost position. Brackets 31 mounted on the side 50walls of the fin cover register with channelshaped guides 36 fixed tothe side walls Ill and prevent lateral movement of the fin hood. The finhood is mounted on lever 34,- which comprises a bar bent in the shape ofa right-angled U, the 55 An arm 4| is attached to the lever 34 andextends through an opening 42 in the front wall of the casing. Mountedon the free end of arm 4| is a foot pedal 43. A catch 44, attached alsoto the free end of arm 4|, is adapted to register ing, 52. is placedabout this frame.

with an opening 45, which is at right angles with opening 42 and servesto hold the arm 4| and the lever in its lowermost position, which, inturn, by reason of the pivoted lever 34, maintains the fin hood in itsuppermost position. A soft rubber gasket 46 mounted on top of the sidewalls of the fin cover insures a tight fit between the insulatedsidewalls of the refrigerant chamberand the finhood when catch 44 is inlocked position as shown in Fig. 2.

Located in the humidifying conduit 29 is a shallow tray or pan 41 inwhich water may be placed. Afilxed to the pan are a plurality ofwick-carrying elements 49 placed in parallel. A wick-carrying elementcomprises metal bar 50, to which is fastened a metal rod 5|, bent toform a frame. A cloth wicking, such as turkish towel- The wick elementsare aflixcd to the pan by riveting their ends to the end walls of thehumidifying tray, as shown at 53, Fig. 2. The bent metal rod 5| is ofsuch length that the wicking extends well down into the tray. The traymay be placed into the humidifying conduit through an opening in thefront wall of the casing, the front side wall 54 of the pan coveringsaid opening. A handle 55 attached to the tray facilitates removal ofthe tray when its removal is desired. A drip pan 56 constructed integralwith humidifying pan 4'! serves to catch condensate which may be drainedthrough pipe 51 connected with the inside of the fin hood 30.

-A filtering chamber 3|, connected to cooling conduit 28 and tohumidifying conduit 29, is located behind the refrigerant chamber.Mounted in the filter chamber 3| is an air filter 58, which comprisestwo screens or grids 59 in parallelspaced relation, between which isplaced a filtering material pervious to air, such as cotton or wool.Filter 58 is mounted in the filter chamber on brackets 60 fastened tothe back wall l3 of the cabinet.

A baiiie 8| extends over approximately half the cross-sectional area ofthe top of the filtering chamber. Mounted above baflie 8| on brackets54, 85, 66, is a motor 62 which may be connected to a suitable source ofcurrent. Rubber cushions in the aforesaid brackets minimize vibrationwhile the motor is operating. Connected to the motor 62 is a fan orblower 83. A housing comprising bailles 61, 88, and 69 is located aboutthe blower and this housing is constructed to direct the air currentfrom the blower through the conditioned air conduit 10.

A plurality of apertures H in the front wall of the cabinet allow air toenter the cooling conduit, when the hood cover is down, or to enter thehumidifying conduit when the fin hood is in its upper position. Aplurality of apertures 12 in the front wall permit air to be dischargedfrom .the conditioned air conduit -10. Shutters l3 permit of adjusteddirectional fiow of the air being discharged from the cabinet.

An economizer coil 14 placed in the filtering refrigerant chamber.

chamber 3| and connected at one end with the inside of refrigerantchamber I6, allows cold gaseous carbon dioxide, after the solid carbondioxide has sublimed, to be removed from the The economizer coil alsoserves to cool the air passing over it. The other end of the economizercoil extends through the back wall l3 of the cabinet. A street elbow 15,attached to this end permits a rubber hose to be attached to lead thespent CO2 outside, if desired. It is seen that the air conditionerherein de scribed has year-round'utility.

In the summertime, when the air is uncomfortably warm and humid, and itis desired to cool and reduce the relative humidity of air in a room orother confined space, the device may be operated as follows: solidcarbon dioxide is charged into the refrigerant chamber l6 by removingthe refrigerant chamber top l8; the hinged cover |4 lifts up out of theway for charging and is conveniently checked by chain I6, one end ofwhich is attached to the top'and the other to bracket 56. After thesolid carbon dioxide is placed in the chamber, cover I8 is replaced andlocked with fasteners 2| and the hinged top let down. The fin cover 30is placed in its down position shown in dot and dash lines, by releasingcatch 44, the

blower is put in operation and air is drawn through apertures H andthrough conduit 28 over the fins as indicated by dotted arrows. The airis cooled from passing over the fins, which are in turn cooled by heatconduction up the fins and to the dry ice. The metal fins 28 are soproportioned as to thickness andlength that, with the air flowing overthem the temperature of the fin surface is above 32. Thus, moisture fromthe cooled air condenses on the cold, fin surfaces and drips off ascondensate into the fin cover 3|].

The condensate thus formed drains from the fin cover through pipe 51into drip pan 58, from which it may be removed when desired.

The cool, dry air passing through the cooling conduit 28 then passesover the economizer coil 14, which cools it still further. The cooledair then passes through the air filter 58, where it is cleared ofsuspended particles, thence up to the blower 63 through the blowerhousing formed by baffles 61, 88, 69, thence through conditioned airconduit 10, and is finally discharged. from th conditioner throughapertures 12.:

When it is desired to stop the operation of the conditioner while thereis solid carbon dioxide in the refrigerant chamber, the motor is shutoff and the fin cover is raised to its uppermost position by pressingdown on foot pedal 43 and locking the lever down by means of catch 44.Thus, the unused solid carbon dioxide is well insulated and will not beinefiiciently spent. Furthermore, an excess of air can not thencirculate about the heat transfer fins and form an undesirable coatingof frost thereon.

In the colder seasons, when the atmosphere in a room is too dry and itis desired to humidify it, the fin cover 30 is placed in its uppermostposition by pressing down on foot pedal 43 and locking the lever bymeans of the catch 44, as hereinbefore described. Water is placed in thepan 4'! so that a part of the wicking is below the surface. When theblower is operated, air is drawn through apertures ll passes downward inthe direction of the full line arrows, follows along the damp wickingwhere it absorbs moisture; thence up and through the filter 58 into thefan 63, and is discharged from the conditioner, as before described.

It is obvious that when the conditioner is operated to humidify airthere should be no solid carbon dioxide placed in the refrigerantchamber.

It is also obvious that water ice may be used as s the refrigerant aswell as solid carbon dioxide when the conditioner is operated as an aircooler.

While certain novel features of the invention have been disclosed andare pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood thatvarious omissions, substitutions and changes may be made by thoseskilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a unit air conditioner for both summer and winter use, a casing, arefrigerant chamber therein for solid carbon dioxide having fourinsulated side walls and an insulated removable top, a heat transferplate forming the bottom Wall of said refrigerant chamber, said transferplate having heat transfer fins dependent therefrom, a cooling conduitpassing under said refrigerant chamber, said fins extending into saidcooling conduit, an air humidifying conduit in the bottom of said casinghaving a water tray with wicking inserted therein to increase theeffective wetted surface, a vertically adjustable insulated fin coveradapted to open and close said cooling conduit and to cover said fins, afiltering chamber in said casing connected with said cooling conduit andhumidifying conduit, a filter pervious to air in said filtering chamber,an economizer coil to carry sublimed carbon dioxide from the refrigerantchamber, a conditioned air conduit in the top of said casing, and ablower mounted in the easing to circulate air through the conditioner.

2. In a unit air conditioner, a refrigerant chamber, an air coolingconduit, a heat transfer plate between said chamber and said conduit,fins attached to said plate extending into said conduit,

and a vertically adjustable insulated fin cover adapted to cover saidfins and prevent heat losses from said fins and frost accumulationthereon when air is not passing through said air cooling conduit.

3. In a portable unit air conditioner, a cabinet, a solid carbon dioxidecontainer within said cabinet and having heat-insulated walls and aheatconducting wall, said cabinet having an air passage contacting saidheat-conducting wall, a fan in said air passage, and a removableheat-insulating cover for said heat-conducting wall.

4. In a portable unit air conditioner, a cabinet, a solid carbon dioxidecontainer within said cabinet and having its top wall and all of itsside walls heat-insulated, said container having a heat-conductingbottom wall, said cabinet having an air passage contacting. saidheat-conducting bottom wall, a fan in said air passage, and a removableinsulating cover for said bottom wall to insulate said bottom wall fromsaid air conduit to conserve refrigerant when its cooling effect is notdesired.

5. In a portable unit air conditioner for both summer and winter use, acabinet, a solid carbon dioxide container within said cabinet and havingits top wall and all of its side walls heat- -insulated, said containerhaving a heat-conducting bottom wall, said container being spaced fromthe top of the cabinet and the bottom of the cabinet and from at leastone side wall of the cabinet to define a tortuous air passage having anupper horizontal conduit, a vertical conduit and a lower horizontalconduit, said casing having an air outlet for said upper conduit and anair inlet for said lower conduit, a fan in said air passage, aninsulating cover for said heat-conducting bottom wall, said lowerconduit also having humidifying devices.

AUSTIN GUDMUNDSEN.

